Compendium

July/August 2009, Volume 30, Issue 6

Published by AEGIS Communications

Figure 1

Flexible Composite Options for Your Practice

Parkell, Inc. is a family-owned manufacturer that has been providing quality andinnovative products to dental professionals for more than 61 years. Parkell offers three products in the composite category, including HyperFIL-DC™ dual-cure restorative composite, Absolute Dentin™ composite core material, and Epic-TMPT™.

The people at Parkell are constantly developing new technologies and enhancements to their current products. Parkell regularly surveys their customers, conducts focus groups, and holds roundtable conferences with clinicians. Two staff dentists answer technical calls and questions, talking daily to dental professionals about specific techniques and procedures involving Parkell products. This ongoing one-on-one dialogue with their customers generates helpful feedback and sparks creative brainstorming, which, in turn, inspires ideas for new products and innovative applications for existing products.

Parkell prides itself on being very “customer-responsive,” says Tree Mainella, Parkell’s director of marketing. “We really listen to our customers and encourage comments and discussion. We offer risk-free trials on most of our products because we’re confident that if someone tries it once, they’ll be hooked. Our staff chemists and engineers test and retest everything we make to ensure quality, reliability, and consistency. Our products have been researched, evaluated, and sometimes even reformulated to make them as intuitive and effective as they can be—without adding unnecessary components. Parkell is a very agile company; we try to stay atuned to the needs of the dental community and be proactive in our response to industry trends. Our company’s mission has always been to meet the challenges the dental professional faces with quality products offered at very reasonable prices.

“Our Absolute Dentin is a perfect example. This high-strength composite core build-up material is syringable and dual-cured. It is densely filled to provide strong, stable support for restorations. Dentists love it because it preps just like dentin and it’s a great value. Plus, it’s so versatile. Absolute Dentin can be used to cement a post and build the core at the same time. It comes in Arctic White (opaque A1 or A2), Tooth Shade (A2 to A2.5), and Blue. We recently introduced our convenient new 10 mL cartridges in addition to our original 50 mL cartridges, so now there’s a choice of sizes and shades.

“Then there’s HyperFIL-DC. This dual-cured, nanofilled, fluoride-containing restorative composite is unique because it was designed to be used as a posterior restorative, yet it is flowable enough to be placed without a flowable liner. Plus, most dentists find it to be esthetic enough to be used successfully as an anterior restorative, too. In fact, many dentists tell us they can’t even tell the difference in side-by-side comparisons. Parkell actually developed HyperFIL because so many clinicians were using Absolute Dentin for posterior restorations (not just core build-ups) but had often told us that they would like it to be more highly polishable. So, our chemists went back to the laboratory and came up with this wonderfully versatile, durable, and easy-to-use composite that costs less than half the price of traditional light-cured posterior composites.” HyperFil is available in two shades—Universal (A2/B2) and a new Enamel shade (A1/B1)—and comes in convenient 10 mL cartridges.

“Epic-TMPT is a more traditional light-cured composite, with one big advantage—its patented filler makes it more resilient, resulting in a much more wear- and stress-resistant restoration. Unlike stiff composites, Epic-TMPT flexes with the tooth, which reduces the likelihood of leakage and sensitivity at the margin. It is available in 15 shades, in both syringes and unit-dose compules.”

Tree continues, “Over the years, Parkell has built a solid relationship with its customers—one of mutual respect and trust. We became known throughout the industry as the folks who make great stuff at great prices—and who stand behind everything we make. We are the only company in the industry that offers a 45-day risk-free trial period on most consumable products and 90-day trial periods on electronics.”

Parkell has worldwide distribution channels and collaborative relationships with many dental schools in the United States, Europe, and Asia, providing products for students and conducting clinical studies.